At the request of a number of African countries, the Commonwealth Secretariat has agreed in principle to support EMPRETEC centres in African Commonwealth countries with the aim of strengthening business development services offered by these centres.

The President of the UN General Assembly, H.E. Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, has written to the UNCTAD Secretary-General expressing "heartfelt gratitude" for UNCTAD's contribution to the debate on the state of the world economy held in New York in May.

His Excellency Mr. Jean Feyder, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg has informed that H.E. Dr. Nicolas Schmit, Minister of Labour, Employment and Immigration will be taking part in the Trade and Development Board panel discussion this September on development strategies in a globalized world.

Nine newly recruited Egyptian diplomats will be coming to UNCTAD 27 July for a briefing on the work of the organization. The young diplomats are currently undergoing training at the Egyptian Institute for Diplomatic Studies in Cairo.

Mrs. Exalgina Gamboa, the Secretary of State for Cooperation of the Republic of Angola, has informed that her Government is currently finalizing a National Status Report outlining measures to be taken on the road to graduation from Least Developed Country status by 2020.

As part of the implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Action adopted by the Fourth UN conference on LDCs held in Istanbul, Turkey, in May 2011 the Government of Turkey has launched the "Graduate Scholarship Programme for the Least Developed Countries".​

A group of experts on competition policy has discussed the peer reviews of the competition laws and policies in three African countries and Mongolia, and has recommended that UNCTAD carry out a proposed technical assistance programme to follow up on progress already made in the field.

According to preliminary estimates by the WTO and UNCTAD, in the first quarter of 2012, world exports of commercial services rose by 3% year-on-year (balance-of-payments basis, current price, not seasonally adjusted) following the same pattern recorded in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Noting that the impact of the global financial crisis on the world economy has underscored the interconnectedness of the health of large global enterprises and the livelihoods of ordinary people, UNCTAD Secretary-General Supachai Panitchpakdi has called for strengthening of oversight by corporate directors on behalf of their shareholders.

An UNCTAD mission has been in Tunis for the past five days to follow up on requests made by Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki at the UNCTAD XIII conference for urgent assistance in consolidating gains from the Arab Spring, fostering inclusive growth, attracting investments, and expanding jobs.